Draft:Joel Ngugi

Joel M. Ngugi (born 1972) is a Kenyan-American Judge, legal scholar and was professor of law at the University of Washington School of Law. He specialized in international law, human rights, and law and development.

Education and early career
Ngugi received his LLB (JD equivalent) with honors from the University of Nairobi in 1996. He then practiced law in Kenya with Kariuki Muigua & Co. Advocates from 1996 to 1998. He obtained an LL.M. from Harvard Law School in 1999 and was admitted to the doctoral program.

His thesis focused on indigenous peoples' rights. Ngugi earned an SJD (PhD equivalent) from Harvard in 2002, with a dissertation titled "Searching for the Market Criterion: Market-Oriented Reforms in Legal and Economic Development Discourses".

He taught at Ilkisonko Secondary School in 1994 before joining Kariuki Muigua & Company Advocates as Associate in 1996. He then moved on to serve as Legal Officer at United Nations Mission in Kosovo in 2002.

Judicial career
Justice Joel Mwaura Ngugi was appointed as a Judge of the High Court in September 2011. Later, he was elevated to the position of Judge of the Court of Appeal in 2022.

Academic career
After a stint at the law firm Foley Hoag LLP from 2002 to 2004, Ngugi joined the University of Washington faculty as an assistant professor in 2004. He was promoted to associate professor in 2008 and served as chair of the African Studies Program from 2008 to 2011.

He has taught courses on human rights, international law, contracts, and international organizations.

Ngugi's research examines issues at the intersection of international law, human rights, economic development, and market reforms, particularly in Africa. He has been critical of neoliberal economic policies promoted by institutions like the World Bank.

His publications include law review articles in journals like the Buffalo Law Review, University of Richmond Law Review, and Michigan Journal of International Law.

Awards and recognition
Ngugi has received several honors, including the John Gallup Laylin Prize in International Law from Harvard in 2002. At the University of Washington, he was named the Philip A. Trautman Professor of the Year for 2004–2005 and 2010–2011. He was also a Foundation Scholar from 2009 to 2011.